Now more than ever, it's true: War is hell
EDITOR:
Our president states that we are at war against terrorism. We scurry around the world lining up allies in this war. It is right and proper that we should do this, but at the same time we should make it known in no uncertain terms that we are at war with or without their support.
Diplomacy doesn't work in dealing with terrorists. Terror works in dealing with terrorists and those that support them.
This is a warfare of their choosing and we must answer in kind. We must locate the terrorists. I have no doubt that we will ultimately do this, and then we must send highly trained, all volunteer, elite troops to eliminate them. We must be ruthless in destroying those elements that threaten, and not only threaten but carry out those threats, to destroy American lives and our way of life.
When we locate a terrorist camp or a facility for training terrorists we must destroy it without mercy. Will we suffer casualties in doing this? Very probably. But in war you suffer casualties and this cannot deter us in waging this war. We do not covet land or the right of their people to worship as they choose, but we are not there to accept the surrender of terrorists or to negotiate a peace settlement. We are there to destroy them and we should take no prisoners.
This cannot be a conventional war and it must be fought on their terms. If we find that an individual, or a state, or an organization, is supporting terrorists, we must train and send, or covertly employ, assassins to eliminate those supporters. If a few individuals, either in governments or organizations, turn up in garbage dumps, dead and castrated, or even just body parts identifiable through fingerprints or other means, other individuals will think long and hard about helping terrorists.
Is this in keeping with our ideals and principles?
Certainly not, and to quote Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, answering a former Southern friend who decried his scorched earth policy of ravaging the land as his army advanced said, "War is hell and there is nothing you or I can do to refine it or make it acceptable."
This is not a war that will end with a surrender and a peace treaty. Nor will it end in my lifetime or in yours. All we can hope for is to eliminate known terrorists and their supporters and contain them in the future through constant vigilance.
WILLIAM BOWDEN
Canfield
Don't buy costly puppies, get one from a shelter
EDITOR:
I recently went to the dog pound. I couldn't believe my eyes. Cage after cage with beautiful dogs with bright eyes and wagging tails. I petted every one of them and not one growled or tried to bite me. As I looked at those wonderful dogs I wondered how anyone could give away a pet who is part of the family. What kind of love is that? It broke my heart to know that most of them will be destroyed.
I urge anyone who is thinking of buying a puppy to think twice before spending $200-$500. If you are not going to breed or show a dog, why buy a purebred? A mixed breed is just as good of a pet. Why buy a puppy if you work or have small children? An adult dog is a lot less trouble: no potty training, chewing, crying at night. Puppies are cute for only a couple months and can be hurt by small children.
Please friends, take your children and go to the pound and pick out your pet, once you look in those eyes and put that collar around his neck, you will have a friend for life. So save a dog from death and you won't believe what he will give to your family in return.
M.L. HEETER
Austintown